BMX Bandits - 'Down At The Hop' (Shoeshine)
3/5
By: Thomas Hannan
The 'Guinness History of Scottish Rock & Pop' (it's a real book, we checked), the undisputed bible of all knowledge on tartan-clad guitar-wielders, would have us think very highly of BMX Bandits - who'd have thought they're actually responsible for all Scottish music that followed their 1986 inception? We dare not to argue with a tome of such stature. Instead, let's investigate their heady claim...
Influential they may be, but as of late, BMX Bandits have been pretty quiet too. 'Down at the Hop' is the fruits of a seven year break that could have seen their cult status dwindle to the knowledge of all but the most clued up of rock and roll aficionados. It sounds like this - light, playful, humorous and quite pleased with the fifties shimmer of guitars that coats each track. It's a record very much stuck in the past (pray tell, when was the last time you went down to a 'hop'?), but with these songs, it's exactly the style that fits them best. Was it to rock, roll or develop some kind of movement that surpassed toe-tapping and grinning, it would come across as laughable. As it is, it remains quite pleasant.
Pleasant? Grinning? Well, you really have brought us to the place to rock haven't you? Quite the opposite, this is here to put a smile on your face, not to ignite fire in your soul. So as polite pop goes, how does it rate? Well, you'll forgive us for being confused about where to place 'Down At The Hop' on the scale. Parts of it are genuinely great, a wonderful 'The Road Of Love Is Paved With Banana Skins' is the closest it comes to energy, 'Silly Boy' plaintive and heartfelt, whilst 'Back In Your Arms' could well be Buddy Holly.
Then there are parts that don't inspire hatred so much as nonchalant indifference. There are instances of just lacking substance; we're not asking 'Down At The Hop' to be gutsy and bitter (it'd refuse point blank), but seeing as we've been shown that it can be joyfully pleasurable in its best moments, the uninspired parts ('Death & Destruction', 'Back In Her Heart' and one or two others) grate just simply because there's little here to get excited about.
The best parts of the album are either when it's gone for a full-out, conscious effort at a timeless song (the aforementioned 'The Road Of Love...') or stumbled across quite a sweet one by accident. 'Little Kitty', unsurprisingly, is as twee as a cat made of string, bizarre squeaking noises and a chorus so catchy it'll either have you bursting out with song or running for cover.
The list of people who could hate this record is as long as your arm, the phrase 'cute guitar pop' being one likely to offend as many people as it will enchant. It's the kind of album that wouldn't actually acknowledge the existence of such hate anyway, it's very happy as it is, there are pretty girls and dreamy melodies, and little else is needed. If that gets you smiling, so will the BMX Bandits.
Artists in this article: BMX Bandits
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